Any fears that the city of Hailey would be out a major chunk of revenues if and when Friedman Memorial Airport moves are unnecessary.
First, placed against the total city budget, revenues from the airport are, as they say, chump change.
But second, since the closing of Friedman and the opening of a new field would be virtually simultaneous, car rentals would resume at the new site without any discernible loss in tax revenues.
The mainstay revenue from the airport is a 3-percent local option tax on car rentals.
In the most recent annual accounting, car rental and lodging taxes -- they're lumped together in a single account -- amounted to some $224,000, according to Hailey City Administrator Heather Dawson.
The option tax netted about $105,000 from restaurants and $48,000 on alcoholic beverages.
This total of $377,000 represents about 3 percent of the city's $11 million budget.
Calculating just the car rentals and lodging portion of the LOT, they represent about 2 percent of the total budget.
Blaine County treasurer Vicki Dick said the county also collects $76,058 in annual property taxes on 19 hangars at the airport and that are shared with the city.
When Friedman is replaced, larger revenues may be in store for the county and Hailey. Hailey Council President Martha Burke, who also is chair of the airport authority, speculated that if land at the airport not sold to offset costs of a new field is developed, tax revenues could far exceed those now realized from car rentals.
